Russia wants bilateral meeting with Ukraine first, then trilateral talks - Zelenskyy
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
Russia proposed holding a bilateral meeting at the leaders’ level first, followed by a trilateral summit involving US President Donald Trump, according to a statement from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after talks at the White House.
Zelenskyy said that US President Donald Trump had contacted the Russian side to discuss possible diplomatic steps. According to him, Moscow proposed first holding a bilateral meeting between Russia and Ukraine, followed by a trilateral summit. The Ukrainian president stressed that Kyiv was ready to take part in any format at the leaders’ level, since only such high-level talks could resolve the most difficult and sensitive issues.
He emphasized that Ukraine was prepared for both a bilateral meeting with Vladimir Putin and a trilateral one, but the outcome would depend on how the bilateral talks unfolded. Zelenskyy added that there were no details yet about the bilateral meeting, but that he and Trump had agreed all sides should demonstrate a genuine willingness to end the war, and that such willingness could only be proven by a leaders’ summit.
According to him, if either side failed to show readiness to meet, Ukraine would expect the United States to act accordingly and apply pressure. He said Ukraine understood the possible formats, meaning there was a chance the meeting could take place.
Zelenskyy concluded that if Ukraine started laying down broad conditions for the meeting, such as demanding a ceasefire upfront, Russia would respond with a hundred conditions of its own. For that reason, he believed the parties should meet without preconditions and work out a path toward ending the war.
When Trump called Putin
According to Zelenskyy, the talks first began in a bilateral format before moving to an expanded session, where the parties discussed security guarantees and potential future meetings in greater detail.
He explained that after this discussion, Trump said he would step out to consult with Putin and return with feedback. Once back in the Oval Office, Trump told the participants that Moscow had proposed a bilateral meeting first, to be followed by a trilateral format.
No date set yet
Zelenskyy stressed that no date for the meeting had been agreed. He said that after the productive discussions with Trump and other partners, it was clear the process was moving toward a trilateral summit. Since Russia had conveyed to the US president a preference for a bilateral meeting first, Ukraine, he added, would never halt its path toward peace and remained ready for any format, provided it was at the presidential level.
White House meeting
On August 18, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Washington for talks with US President Donald Trump at the White House. The two leaders first held a one-on-one meeting, followed by negotiations joined by European leaders.
After the talks, Trump phoned Vladimir Putin, saying he had begun preparations for a summit involving the Russian and Ukrainian presidents.
Further details on the White House meetings and their outcomes are available in the report by RBC-Ukraine.
